Top 10 Reasons Why Immigrants Get Visas Denied

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Note: The Law Offices of Larry L. Doan in Los Angeles, CA, provides the following blog article and other information on this site, including our responses to comments, for the purpose of legal information only; it is NOT legal advice nor does it create an attorney-client relationship.

We thought it would be fascinating and instructive to analyze and compile a list of why people were denied their visa applications in trying to immigrate to the U.S. An immigrant with one of these reasons potentially lurking in the background could try to gauge their chances of success to some extent using this list.

Only 2017 statistics are included in the list. Also, it only includes people who tried to apply for immigrant visas last year, that is, to immigrate permanently to the U.S. In legalese, these reasons for denial are known as “grounds of inadmissibility” or “inadmissible grounds.” These grounds come into play at the last step of the immigration process: at the consulate interview in the immigrant’s home country before the immigrant receives the immigrant visa for permanent residence. This is after all the years of waiting for the visa priority date to be current, after all the facts of the relationship have been proved to be true between the petitioner and beneficiary, after all the forms appear to have been correct….but then these grounds appear suddenly like thieves in the night to derail the immigrant visa application.

Note: Our new self-consultation apps on how to immigrate to the US, available as described here, are for applicants who do not have these grounds on their records, except for Nos. 6 and 4 below (Unlawfully present in US 365 days or more) which fortunately, as can be seen below is not too difficult to overcome with the right type of extreme hardship evidence.

For each inadmissible ground, along with our comments, the list includes the total number of people denied last year, as well as the percentage who were denied. In other words, out of the total number of applicants faced with a certain ground of inadmissibility, such as for example, criminal convictions, some percentage of applicants was ultimately approved for their visas because they managed to receive some type of waiver.

The list is ranked by the total number of applicants denied, from the smallest to the largest. So, let’s begin…

No. 10 – Controlled substance violators

Applicants denied: 644 Denial rate: 94%

The extremely high rate of denial is quite fitting here. Those applicants who violated or were convicted of violating controlled substance laws (no matter in what country, by the way) have an extremely difficult time overcoming this ground, as seen in the 6% figure of those who managed to do so.

No. 9 – Public charge

Applicants denied: 1,221 Denial rate: 38%

A public charge is someone who cannot support themselves in the US but must resort to the government to support them. Such a person cannot immigrate here. As can be seen, however, this reason for denial is relatively easy to overcome with 62% of applicants able to correct the problem when they were told by the consulate that there was a problem. In reality, the immigrant’s petitioner had to sign the Affidavit of Support form ahead of time to agree they would pledge their income and assets to support the immigrant. Even if the income is not enough, a joint sponsor’s income can be used to help out. Thus, it’s quite easy to overcome the ground of being a public charge and for the immigrant visa to be approved as a result.

No. 8 – Smugglers

Applicants denied: 1,292 Denial rate: 51%

Just to be clear, this refers to alien smuggling, not contraband. And yes, there is a waiver available if the alien being smuggled was someone in the immigrant’s immediate family. The term “smuggling” makes it seem as though the immigrant committed a very serious act, but actually, it includes acts such as “encouraged, induced, assisted, abetted, or aided any other alien to enter or to try to enter the United States in violation of law.” So, it’s not only hiding another person in the trunk of a car that can make you guilty of alien smuggling! Regardless, the 51% denial rate shows that this ground is not so difficult to overcome as in previous years when there was up to 90% denial rate.

No. 7 – Crime involving moral turpitude (CIMT)

Applicants denied: 1,363 Denial rate: 80%

The bad CIMT. In immigration work, lawyers hate to hear this acronym mentioned because it means the client’s case could be a very hard case! A crime, such as DUI (driving under the influence) will not involve moral turpitude because it does not involve “baseness” or a “bad heart,” which is a rough definition of “moral turpitude.” But DUI with death or injury involved may involve moral turpitude, depending on the local DUI law involved and if there was at least recklessness on the part of the driver in causing the death or injury. Of course, it goes without saying that more serious crimes such as fraud, theft, rape, murder, and so forth are CIMTs. A conviction for a CIMT in an applicant’s past will make them inadmissible to the U.S. although a waiver is possible. However, the 80% denial rate shows that the waiver will be quite difficult to get.

No. 6 – Unlawfully present 365 days or more (provisional waiver)

Applicants denied: 1,956 Denial rate: 5%

This category is very common because, as we discussed it in detail in our other article, “I’m Illegal, I Can Still Get a Green Card by Marrying My U.S. Citizen Boyfriend or Girlfriend?”, many immigrants have previously accumulated unlawful or illegal presence in the US of 365 days or more, such that if they leave to try to apply for their permanent visa at the US consulate in their country, they are confronted with the 10-year bar. As was shown in that article, this bar has available an extreme hardship waiver that is applied for in the US even before the applicant leaves for the interview, known as the “provisional unlawful presence waiver” or just “provisional waiver.”

The 5% rate of denial is misleading; it does not mean this waiver is easy to get (anything involving the showing of “extreme hardship” to a US relative is not easy to begin with). It only means that even after the provisional waiver had been approved for the applicant before leaving the US, he or she was confronted with something seriously deficient about the waiver: for example, maybe the consulate discovered there was fraud in applying for the waiver, or some other problem, etc. All this statistic really shows is that for 95% of applicants who had the provisional waiver approved before leaving the US for consulate interview (if it’s not approved, they most likely wouldn’t leave), they will eventually be approved for their visa.

No. 5 – Unlawfully present after previous immigration violations

Applicants denied: 2,648 Denial rate: 83%

This category is an extremely harsh category to be caught under. It consists of immigrants who had been unlawfully present in previous times in the U.S. for a total period of more than 1 year, or who were ordered removed or deported, but later they entered or tried to enter the U.S. illegally. At their consulate visa interview, when this negative immigration history is discovered, such a person cannot be admitted to the U.S. It’s a lifetime bar! However, the person could wait 10 years outside the U.S. then apply to immigration authorities for permission to reapply for admission to the U.S.

No. 4 – Unlawfully present 365 days or more (non-provisional waiver)

Applicants denied: 3,022 Denial rate: 39%

This category is the same 10-year bar as in No. 6 above, except that for these applicants, for whatever reason, they did not obtain an approved provisional waiver before leaving the US for their consulate interview. Instead, at the interview they are confronted with the 10-year bar. And, as was shown in the same article, this bar does have an extreme hardship waiver available to excuse it when the applicant is applying from outside the US, the non-provisional waiver type. This waiver had a 39% denial rate last year, or in other words, nearly 6 out of 10 applicants got the waiver approved.

However, this doesn’t necessarily mean this waiver is easy to get. Obviously, the statistics used to construct this list does not, and indeed, cannot tell us how many people who knew ahead of time they would be denied and did not bother to apply. For example, someone with a weak case might have obtained legal advice ahead of time from their immigration lawyer that applying for a visa would be a waste of time even if there is a waiver available in the law. Thus, it may be that for certain waivers such as this one, there were more applicants with stronger cases to begin with anyway, thus biasing the rate of success toward approval. To obtain approval of this waiver, the immigrant has to leave behind their family in the U.S. and travel back to their home country and apply at the U.S. consulate. If the waiver is denied, they are stuck in their country unable to return to their family. Thus, looking at the statistics we believe that it’s likely only people who felt more confidently ahead of time that they have a strong hardship case would take this risk.

No. 3 – Misrepresentation

Applicants denied: 4,360 Denial rate: 74%

This is the “When you lie, you fry” category. These were immigrants who had their visas denied due to being caught committing fraud or misrepresenting (lying) some fact in order to obtain the visa or even any previous visa or admission document. The relatively high denial rate shows that U.S. immigration authorities do not have a high tolerance for immigrants not being truthful on their applications. Still, 26% of them last year ended up overcoming this due to a waiver being available. The waiver is to show extreme hardship to a spouse, child or parent who is a U.S. citizen or legal permanent resident and thus, is quite similar to the waiver used for the very common 10-year bar, which is the next category.

No. 2 – Labor certification

Applicants denied: 8,363 Denial rate: 96%

A less well-known way of immigrating to the U.S. is through an employer petition. A U.S. employer can petition for an immigrant worker to take a permanent job position in the U.S. In order to qualify, however, the employer must file a labor certification application with the U.S. Department of Labor to certify that there are no willing, able, and qualified U.S. workers for the job position. Only if this labor certification is certified will the immigrant worker be approved a visa to immigrate. However, at the consulate interview, there are many applicants whom the consulate found to have intended to immigrate to the US to work, without having had a labor certification filed and certified for them. Those cases must be denied. Or, even if a labor certification has been obtained, the visa may still be denied, such as when the consulate officer believes the worker does not truly intend to work for the employer, or fraud in obtaining the labor certification, etc. This ground of denial is almost impossible to overcome as seen in the almost 100% rate of denial.

Finally, we come to the TOP REASON FOR VISA DENIAL, which is…:

No.1 – Application does not comply with provisions of law or regulations!

Applicants denied: 85,185 Denial rate: 33%

Amazingly, for something that is #1, it is not a fancy reason to deny a visa! The Department of State does not break out in fine details what these consisted of, but they have to do with reasons such as the applicant not being eligible for the visa being sought, filing requirements not met, lack of required evidence, missing forms, missing information, etc. Pretty mundane reasons actually. That said, this category seems to also be a catch-all category containing reasons for denial that do not fit neatly into any of the main categories laid out in the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA).

This reason for denial (legally, section 221(g) of the INA) is relatively easy to overcome. This is understandable if the denial has to do with deficient application forms or missing evidence since those can be easily fixed by the applicant. A HUGE number of applicants were told initially they were in this category last year, more than 254,000, which easily dwarfs all the other nine categories combined. The lesson here is, make sure you are eligible for the visa ahead of time and your applications and documents in tip-top shape! Hiring a good immigration lawyer is obviously a good start toward this end.

So, those are the top 10 reasons for denial in terms of number. In terms of percentage, the ranking goes like this from the most difficult to overcome to the easiest:

Any action you take or rely upon after reading the information on this blog is your own responsibility and the Law Offices of Larry L. Doan bears no responsibility or connection to such action. For an analysis of your detailed and specific questions related to your individual immigration situation or problem, there is no substitute for a “live” meeting with an attorney. This can only be done during a paid consultation between the Law Offices of Larry L. Doan and you. To get started with a consultation, please contact us: paidconsult@guruimmigration.com.

127 Responses to “Top 10 Reasons Why Immigrants Get Visas Denied”

Hello, can filing for a tax extension negatively affect your application for permanent residence? My friend came up short this tax season. He will of course file the extension and create a payment plan with the IRS, but his immigration lawyer is telling him that it is highly likely his application will get denied as a result of it. I came across this article and wonder what your general thoughts are. Obviously we are sure that *not* paying your taxes would be grounds for denial. But taking an extension and paying it back? Seems like you would be showing good citizenry?

Not paying taxes is not a ground of inadmissibility in my post. If we’re talking about an application for permanent residence with USCIS and not for citizenship, the taxes of an immigrant seeking green card are not really relevant (because they usually have an affidavit of support sponsor), unless good moral character is an issue which is only applicable in an application for cancellation of removal in court in removal proceedings decided by a judge. So, I don’t know why that immigration lawyer, without knowing all the facts, would say the application would get denied because of a tax payment plan. Even in a citizenship application, a payment plan would satisfy USCIS.

Is it normal that a former US citizen who was arrested once in her life in 1967 for marijuana at age 19, law-abiding and highly regarded ever since ,is refused a Non – immigrant visa for a transit or visit ?
What is the sense ?

A marijuana offense is a controlled-substance violation and so is a ground of inadmissibility in the INA, no matter how long ago (there’s no time limitation when it comes to this ground in the INA), so yes, the “sense” in the denial is that the consulate was following the letter of the law. Also, you didn’t indicate what type of violation it was, whether it was merely possession or some type of trafficking, no matter how slight. If it was not possession, then it’s even harder to overcome this inadmissibility.

I’m not saying it was a fair or just decision. Just that the consulate has the authority to deny based on the current law. It has wide discretion and their decision is pretty much binding, and the only realistic recourse is to re-apply with more sympathetic/rehabilitative factors in favor of the applicant fully documented.

Sir my brother in-law has dragged me and my two children into civil case since 2001. My kids were looking forward for doing their MBA from an ivy league college.as they had suffered enough torture violence and humiliation.my brother in law sent his kids to study to USA and UK.While mine were made to run between police stations and court securing themselves .He ruined the dreams and aspirations of 2 brilliant young kids.
Now he has a 10 yr visa and is applied for a GREEN CARD.
Can he be barred from moving out of the country to USA.
He has already taken his share in1984 . written acknowledgement of the same.he Is just jealous and greedy.he never looked after his father nor siblings .in fact he has been like Hitler.
My young son at the Age of 26 had both his kidneys failed . so my brother in law thinks by leaving us in the courts where matters take ages to finish he can enjoy in USA/UK . As he is waiting for the worst.
.Nd I also have a bed ridden husband.plz is there any law or regulation or humanitarian ground I can request the. USA/UK govt to prevent his entry.
Please guide and help.dont let such heartless cruel people misuse your country.
Please help in the name of Lord Nd good will .feel our pain.

Caught in shoplifting unintentional. A class criminal meadourn. Have been arrested n now court case. I m a software guy. Making good money. Have to go for visa stamping to India. How to overcome immigration issues. Wat I should do in court if I don’t pledge guilty Thor get charges reduced??0

Comments or questions related to the blog post you’ve just read can be left in the “Leave a Reply” box below. HOWEVER: All comments or questions regarding your or family member’s immigration situation and seeking info or advice on what to do next will be ignored unless you contact us for a paid consultation here: paidconsult@guruimmigration.com. By doing so, please expect a quote for the price of the consultation with the Guru, Attorney Doan.

We must implement this policy due to the volume of inquiries and emails received from this blog. We can only respond in the comments section below to general questions that seek clarification of a point made in the blog post above in a general way.

Hi. I am sorry, I am a little confused. My friend had gotten arrested but not convicted or charged with having 1 ecstasy pill someone had given him in his pocket. He didn’t even take it. This was also 16 years ago. He does not do any drugs and would not be considered a user or abuser.. Will this still give him zero chance of getting into the U.S.? I have read instances where people have been approved despite first offense/only drug offense type situations.. What are his chances? Are you saying he will 100% be denied?

This is a good question because it relates to a clarification of something in the post above, rather than merely asking me to analyze or advise on what to do with your individual immigration situation. Your confusion is understandable but you’re referring to category 6 on the list, “Drug abuser or addict,” which is not the same thing as your friend’s situation. Being convicted of a drug offense doesn’t necessarily mean the person is also an abuser or addict. Sometimes yes, sometimes, no. It takes more, of course, to be categorized as a “drug abuser or addict,” such as a pattern of drug usage and/or convictions. A person who’s convicted of drug possession/use may or may not be inadmissible to the US, depending on the type of drug that was used, how the local jurisdiction classified the offense, and other factors, much less a person who was merely arrested but not convicted or even charged.

Hi. I’m a US citizen and i’m trying to bring my wife. My case is at NVC and all i need to is send in financial documents. The issue i’m having is that my income is not sufficient enough to meet the income requirement. And i’m having hard time finding sponsor me. Can somebody please tell me what i should do? I will appreciate any response. Have a good day.

I am an american citizen.I recently discovered that my fiance and mother of my two kids previously tried to use a ghanaian passport to enter the united states.I filed for her and my daughter and they were both denied visa in lagos.My son on the other hand is also a citizen born in nyc by my fiancee.
pls how can i resolve this crisis?

Obviously, she tried to commit fraud by using a Ghanaian passport instead of Nigerian. She’s got a big problem. For possible solutions, please pay for a paid consultation with the Guru, Attorney Doan, at paidconsult@guruimmigration.com.

I tried to visit the USA in 2013 using my non immigrant visa but was denied admission because on the previous visit a few years ago I admitted my son to public school which appears to be a violation of my non immgrant visa . So at the port of entry they gave me a chance to choose not to enter the USA instead of getting a five years barr so I chose to go back to my country . I have an iimigrant visa petition which was approved and my priority date is near . Will this incident affect my immigrant visa

Mys, this is something that would involve a consultation with Attorney Doan as is stated in our disclaimer on this blog. Please pay for a paid consultation by contacting us at paidconsult@guruimmigration.com

I have a sister who just had her immigration interview via F3 petition filed by parents 10+ years ago. She was in USA before and had a small shoplift incident where the charge was dropped. When the incident happened, she panicked and she didn’t have any official ID (i.e. driver’s license) with her and gave a different name. She had arrest record for this incident.

After 25 years when she completed her 260 form, we didn’t mention this all because it was so many years ago and nobody really remembered much of anything. Plus it was under a different name and not tied to her social.

When fingerprints were done at the interview today, this popped up and she was interrogated about that incident. She admitted to everything that happened. The embassy kept her and her children’s passport saying they will get back to her on her case. What is the likelihood of her getting US visa? If they wanted to deny, they would have denied it and that would have been the end of it, right? I am trying to figure out if we should still be hopeful or just give up.

Nirob, this is something that would involve a consultation with Attorney Doan as is stated in our disclaimer on this blog. Please pay for a paid consultation by contacting us at paidconsult@guruimmigration.com.

On August 4th my husband applied for a TN visa for himself and TD visas for me and our daughter. During the interview, he was asked for a correction on his employment letter which he provided a day after. Everything was fine and we received DHL tracking info some days after, we went to DHL when visas were ready to pick up but we could not get them because we were informed that Consulate ask them back. My husband received an e-mail from Consulate on August 13th and an appointment was set for Monday August 17th when he was informed about visa denial, the reason that consular officer gave to my husband was that Consulate has information about an arrest under his name, the consular officer also cancelled our tourist visas. After this, we began a research and we found out that my husband was victim of an identity theft, we already have compiled some evidence as a proof of the fact that the arrested person was not him. Does a process exist to manage similar cases? What should we do? We were legally living in US since 2010. We have never been arrested, our record is clean in US and Mexico. We applied at the Consulate in Ciudad Juarez, MX

Not sure what you mean by your question “Does a process exist to manage similar cases?” Unclear what you mean by to “manage cases” and “manage by whom?” As stated in the disclaimer, the Guru would be happy to give answers and advice in a paid consultation. Contact us at paidconsult@guruimmigration.com for arrangements.

My Girlfriend got divorced about 4 months ago. She just recently had her 10 year green card application submitted through a American gentleman in her home country that completed and filed her original marriage and green card application. After living in the states for one year, she discovered that her now ex husband had lied to her about many things (ability to have a family; provide schooling; and general support for medical issues) in order to marry and be with her. It seems to me that being deceived into marrying someone would be grounds for a strong case to be approved for a 10 year green card. Can you shine some light on this subject for me? What are the rules? What are her chances of being approved? She has worked full time now since she moved out of her house(December of last year), is employment grounds or good reason to be approved the green card status?

As we stated in the disclaimer at the end of the post above, if you want the Guru to “shine some light on this subject,” especially something as complicated as this, it would be necessary to contact us at paidconsult@guruimmigration.com to do a paid consultation with the Guru. He simply cannot post detailed answers to specific questions that obviously require a legal consultation, especially ones of a highly personal nature such as this, in this comments section.

It depends on what and how bad the misrepresentation was. It would be good for you to do a paid consultation with the Guru, Attorney Doan, since he’s the expert and licensed attorney in immigration law and can advise and counsel you as to what to do. Please contact us at paidconsult@guruimmigration.com.

My husband was charged with controlled substance in back 2006, he was denied his visa, we submitted a motion to reconsider explaning the first offenders act but he once again got denied what can we do next or there is no more hope.

As the Guru discussed above, controlled substance is one of the most difficult categories to overcome. However, it seems you had received advice that the First Offenders Act may be applicable to your husband’s situation. It would be beneficial to do a consultation with the Guru, Attorney Doan, to see if this is true, and also to explore if he could represent your husband to do a brief since the arguments have to be professionally prepared to have any chance of success. Please email us at paidconsult@guruimmigration.com.

Husband got Deferred action aproved
We are tryeng to apply for the aproval parole… but were very confused since it says nothing is guarante that they can aprove it but its not for sure he can comr bak in the U.S…. my question is wat would be the reasons they wouldnt let him bak in even though if he would the aproval? any advice on what to do by passing by inspection thrue the airport

Dear SIR..
Hi, greetings of the day..
Discrepancy in the personal details for derivative applicant F4 sponsored family category previously applied unsuccessfully for a student visa with genuine documentation and never traveled to the us before.

My wife’s priority date for the F4 immigration petition is about to become current and i would be accompanying her as a secondary applicant. There is a major discrepancy in the date of birth between my previous passport and my current one. My current passport shows my correct DOB as per the birth certificate and my marriage certificate have the mention of the same DOB. Also there is a change in my name in relation to my previous passport effected through govt gazette with due reference to my previous name four years after I applied for the student visa . Here it is customary to follow the DOB as per the tenth grade certification and my previous passport had my DOB as per the certificate which had a wrong DOB (14/8/1975) information whereas my DOB as per the original municipal birth certificate has a different DOB (14/12/1982) . At the time of making F1 application it never occurred to me to bring about the changes in the DOB to match my birth certificate since the birth certificate was not so mandatory for F1 visa as it is for an immigrant visa in which case it is one of the mandatory documents. Now that we would be waiting to be interviewed for an immigrant visa anytime soon how my previous application would bear on my present situation. awaiting in anticipation of your best advice.

If you want advice on your situation, then as we stated above after every blog post, it would be necessary to contact us for a paid consultation with the Guru, Attorney Doan, at paidconsult@guruimmigration.com. Even if he wanted to, there’s simply not enough time in a day for him to provide free advice for inquiries from all over the internet.

hello my wife is currently serving a ten year bar for entering the us after a deprtation she was granted a waiver but was told she had to wait to summit after 4.5 years doesnt make sense if she was giving ten years also she was never told she was getting deported the had her sign a paper and took finger prints when they caught her at the border in nogales which she said she forced to sign what are my options

This is far too complicated to reply to in any serious manner here in this space. Also have no idea what you mean by “wait to summit.” Yes, signing some “papers” at the border could have meant expedited removal (deportation in expedited manner). Contact the Guru for a paid consultation, paidconsult@guruimmigration.com.

My husband is in usa on F1 visa but when he filled in ds160 he said he is unmarried. I applied F2 visa and my visa got rejected. Visa officer said that your husband lied that he is unmarried and my visa got rejected.

Except for a waiver, not much we or anyone can do when your husband lied on his application for F-1 visa about not being married. Don’t know why he thought the consulate wouldn’t catch that later when you applied.

Hello,
I’m a sister of a us citizen and my brother will file the I-130 petition. If I get married and have a child during the wait period, can they still be include in the petition? Or I’ll have to became a permanent resident and then file for my husband and child?

Hello I’m filing for you husband who was deported 13 yrs ago to Jamaica, he was charged with trespassing and possession of cocaine. He was helped for deportation, and volunteered to be removed. The judge ordered 10 yrs before he would be able to reapply for reentry. We got married after he returned to Jamaica. We are now waiting for his interview, is there a possibility that his visa could be denied?

As was discussed in the post, anytime a crime is on a person’s records, and there are two here, there’s always a “possibility” that the visa would be denied or at least have major problems if certain evidence is not presented or additional steps not adequately taken, and also it depends on the type of crime that was commmitted. However, to know if these two convictions would present a probability that his visa would be denied or not, the only way to do that is to contact the Guru, Attoney Doan, for a paid consultation, paidconsult@guruimmigration.com.

hi. we had a fiance visa but we got married before the interview, when she went they found out and refused the visa and he told her that she lied… how ever i started a new papers for the marriage visa and the interview is coming up ! should i be worried about what happened last interview !! i am from Egypt. and if they asked her about lying last interview what should she say ?

Yes the lie is something already in the records and the consulate of course knows about this so there’s no point in hiding it, which would make things infinitely worse. She most likely will need a waiver.

my friend went to his medial today for his visa to the U.S. They asked him if he had ever taken drugs. He didn’t want to lie so he said about 10 years ago he tried cocaine and one time of pot. He is worried about not getting to come here. Do you think that will affect him?

Of course, drugs are always a serious thing and could very much result in the denial of his case. To know if it’s severe enough or if there are solutions, because each case is different and depends on its own facts, I can only advise him of that through a paid consultation, consult@guruimmigration.com.

Hi
I was married and my husband filed for me in 2003 but he never came to the interview and I was denied. We are now divorced. My current boyfriend wants to get married and file for me, I am worried because he did jail time on four different occasions for possession of marijuana. He also had a probation violation. I want to know if this would prevent me from getting my green card. By the way he still smokes and I am afraid I might get into trouble by association

Normally the petitioner’s crimes are not an issue except if they relate to abuse or exploitation crimes. As for “trouble by association,” that would depend on the actual circumstances of his smoking marijuana and you, which I can only advise through a paid consultation.

Hi, I enter in America on 2004 with a fake passport and was sent back to my country from the same day, so now its 2015 and am married, my wife and child got their vacation visa but when i apply i was clearly denied . i would like to know if its possible for me to get a US Vacation Visa since its been 10 year sicec the offence? Thank You …

You used a fake passport so there’s fraud too now, and that’s not going to go away after 10 yrs. This is complicated and you may or may not qualify now. I’ve helped people in the past but it depends. You would have to consult with an attorney such as myself. Contact my office to do a paid one.

Hi my husband is in immigration jail we have been fighting his case since last June we have a i130 approval and a i485 pending but wen he went to court this month the judge ordered him removed now we really don’t know what to do he was told we can transfer his case to couselar processing and filed a waiver I cannot move their my son has a disability and I take care of my aunt she is 67 she also has a disability can u point me in the right direction. …

I’m surprised your husband’s attorney (surely he had one during removal proceedings) hasn’t offered advice as to what to do now but if he’s been ordered removed, he would have to move very fast now for an appeal, depending on when it happened. There are many reasons why a person isn’t eligible for an I-485 in a court case and that should have been advised by his attorney. Needless to say, it’s extremely complicated but I have successfully helped many clients to consular process with a waiver. Please contact my office for a consultation.

Hi!
I previously applied for asylum but denied, so i continued my status here in US as an international student. However, my visa is now already expired and I really would like to go back home for vacation. Do you think they will grant and renew my visa, given that I had applied for asylum previously?
Please advise!

I would be more worried about your overstay preventing the consulate from renewing your visa, not to mention the 3- or 10-year bar coming into effect once you leave the US, depending on how long you’ve overstayed.

Hi. I try to enter the u.s in 2007 they caught me & deport me. & use a false name & d.o.b. at the time because I was scare. I re-enter that same year & I been here ever since. I have 3 u.s citizens kids Will my residence be denied?

My fiance has his interview in a few weeks and has some older crimes on his record, 2 for theft over 10 years ago (one though he just completed his community service for and got trialed dec of 2013). He has done no jail time. However he also has a fraudulent use of a credit card that is less then 2 years ago. Will these affect his approval? He has papers of all his criminal history reports.

They may — theft and fraud are crimes of moral turpitude. At the least, his case will be held up after the interview until the consulate has a chance to examine all the details about the crimes and instruct him that a waiver may be available. A consultation with the Guru, Attorney Doan, is highly recommended to understand the impact of these — some crimes may be devastating. Attorney Doan would have to analyze your fiance’s convictions in detail to see if an exception applies. That can be done through a paid consultation. Please contact us at consult@guruimmigration.com, or visit our site guruimmigration.com and click on “Email/Phone Consult” at the top.

I had a conviction for the controlled substance (marijuana, less than 1 oz) 5 years ago when I was in F1. I came back to my home country and re-applied for returning F1 (never fallen out of F1 status and still pursuing a higher degree), as my visa had expired. The consular denied the visa under section 221 (a) 2 (A) (i) (II); however, retained my passport, I-20, along with other necessary documents copied, stating they would apply for a waiver. It has already been like 100 days since my interview, that I haven’t heard anything about my case or been hearing that my case is under administrative processing. I am worried that I have already missed my whole semester. Is there any possibility that I would get the visa? Do you have any idea, how long does it usually take? Is there anything that I have to do, apart from they have already filed the waiver?

A waiver would normally be applied for by the visa applicant, not by the consulate. Only a paid consultation with the Guru can he give an opinion regarding exactly what type of marijuana conviction you received, what state it was in (every state got different laws on that), and if your waiver is likely to be approved. Please contact us at consult@guruimmigration.com, or visit our site guruimmigration.com and click on “Email/Phone Consult” at the top.

“spousal visa to canada.” Apparently, this would mean you’re immigrating to Canada. This blog only deals with immigration to the US and the Guru knows nothing about Canadian immigration. Also, every state or country has its own definitions for various types of theft, some more severe than others, and so on a blog comment it just isn’t possible to answer if a particular type of theft on your records would severely impact your chance of immigrating anywhere. Surely Canada immigration must take into account the fact that a person was charged or convicted of theft somewhere else.

I am applying as an Immigrant to the U.S. My petitioner is a U.S. employer. My whole family was included in the petition, however my husband cannot come with us during this time due to his current political position in our town. I am planning to continue with the application along with my 3 kids only who are 15, 13 and 7. Will our situation, especially my husband not coming with us be a ground for visa denial?

It appears from your description that you are the principal beneficiary of the employer’s petition, not your husband, so he doesn’t have to immigrate with the rest of the family at this time, but can be a “following to join.”

My husbands i 601 was denied because of a drug conviction, but the i 130 was approved; what can we do? We voluntarily told immigration that my husband had a conviction for a class a drug in the UK in 2000. We now live in California. Our i-130 was approved but the i 601 was denied. And we were told that the i 485 will also be denied. The immigration officer told us that we should have never been asked to do a i 601 because a drug conviction is never approved. Im sorry we ever volunteered this information. Is there any recourse that we can do to get out application approved? Can we reapply? Under what circumstance can we see a judge about our case. We had a very strong application for hardship but the immigration officer said that drug convictions are an automatic denial.

Controlled-substance convictions result in harsh consequences because they are considered “aggravated felonies” under the immigration laws. There are limited exceptions. Attorney Doan would have to analyze your husband’s conviction in detail to see if an exception applies. That can be done through a paid consultation with him. Please contact us at consult@guruimmigration.com, or visit our site guruimmigration.com and click on “Email/Phone Consult” at the top.

I don´t understand something : IF , you stayed one year legal in the U.S but change of status got denied after 5 month waiting in the US , do you have still 180 days after this to leave the country without consequenses ?

Yes, the 3-year bar doesn’t start kicking in until it’s the 181th day overstay, but that doesn’t mean there are no “consequences”: it’s never a good idea to deliberately overstay even if it’s less than 180 days, since you may still be denied admission on a future trip to the US. However, if the change of status (COS) was timely filed before your current stay had expired, the 5 months waiting for a decision does not count toward unlawful presence even if the COS was ultimately denied.

Larry L. Doan, Esq.
GuruImmigration.com

Note: The above is for purpose of legal information only; it is NOT legal advice nor does it create an attorney-client relationship, which can only be created by an agreement between the Law Office of Larry L. Doan and the questioner.

Emailed stating proof is needed for the employment of the petitioner. Petitioner is now unemployed but was employed at time of Affidavit of Support . What should be done in this case? Should old pay stubs/employment letter be sent or should petitioner state 0 for income and rely on joint sponsor’s qualified income?

The article above is about the grounds of inadmissibility, not about how to do the Affidavit of Support properly. We can only provide an individualized answer to your question through a paid consultation with Attorney Doan. Please contact us at consult@guruimmigration.com to do so, or visit our site guruimmigration.com and click on “Email/Phone Consult” at the top.

NVC needs additional financial evidence for assets and employment for the i-864. I realized Joint sponsor does not meet 125 percent poverty guidelines to sponsor an additional person on last years taxes but does make enough expected income for this year and DID make enough income in the previous 2 years before last year. Even for assets, he does not have enough to achieve a qualified level to sponsor another person. Should I just find a new sponsor who did make enough last year and this year (even without assets added) ?

The article above is about the grounds of inadmissibility, not about how to do the I-864 Affidavit of Support properly. We can only provide an individualized answer to your question through a paid consultation with Attorney Doan. Please contact us at consult@guruimmigration.com to do so, or visit our site guruimmigration.com and click on “Email/Phone Consult” at the top.

I haven’t stayed in the USA for 6 months an they deny me the visa .say cause I over stayed my time I haven’t been to the USA for 6years .i admit I got excited an over stay my time but I was still back home before my six months

Overstaying by less than 6 months is not a guarantee you will be approved for a visa soon again, especially when you re-apply soon after leaving the US. The consulate may still be distrustful of your intent. That said, you should be able to present evidence of your exact departure date from the US to show you overstayed by less than 6 months when you re-apply so that the 3-year bar is not an issue.

Hello therе! ӏ could have sworrn I’ve visited this blog before but after ǥoing through a few of the articles I realized it’s new to me.
Nonetheless, I’m definitely delighted ӏ found it and I’ll
be bookmarking it and checkng back frequently!

I live in american samoa for 15 years and one of my dream is to visit United States before i die,i work hard to save my money and one of my reason to visit how beautiful America is.not only the movies that i watch im really excited.im not planning to stay because i love american samoa the life style is very simple and peaceful.but when i apply B1/B2 last year In APia i was denied.the consul he is asking how many times if Im single and answer YEs sir.Are you coming back in amercan samoa and i answer yes again because i have job.one of my reason is just to visit U.S and nothing else.so that time im was crying i dont any chance to visit anymore.i dont know what the mean reason why i was denied.some of my friends told me just say truth that you are visiting and you are coming back.yes i did but im denied and one of friend the consul approve the visa and now the person is already in U.S and TNT now.im so feel frustrated and its unfair of some applicants was denied.Why it’s really hard to apply a visa specially for single like me. And I pray to our GOD i have a second chance to re-apply visa again one my B-day wishes thank you and God Blessed you all.

Not sure why you were denied since American Samoa is a US territory and you’re a US national (perhaps you were not born there). You can do a paid consult with the Guru, Attorney Doan, consult@guruimmigration.com, if you wish to get some answers. Or please visit our site guruimmigration.com and click on “Email/Phone Consult” at the top.

Wow that was unusual. I just wrote an really long comment but after I clicked submit
my comment didn’t appear. Grrrr… well I’m not writing
all that over again. Anyhow, just wanted to say fantastic
blog!

Hi, I just became a us citizen, I have been married for 14 years, my wife and I have three kids ages 14,8 and 4. We live in San diego on week days do to our children attending school (in San Diego) and on friday’s we go back to tijuana for the weekend and come back on sunday afternoon. She walks across the border with her tourist visa that will expire next year and i drive our kids across since they all are u.s citizens. We have been doing this for about four years, besides my wife crosses sometimes during weekdays to visit her parents in tijuana.
My wife has never worked in the U.S, she’s always been a housewife and has no record of living here.
My question is: Can she go to the border an get an I-94 and then file to adjust her status.(can she tell the officer that she needsit to adjust status or just tell him that she wants it to travel?).
Or should I filed as if she were outside U.S.
Thank you for your advice.

Please contact us for a consultation if you would like advice because there is a way of doing this. Or, you can retain us to do the adjustment of status because most of the times, it will not go smoothly on non-attorney cases. San Diego is close to LA; we have many many clients there.

We cannot tell whether you were in the US unlawfully or not after the work permit expired or when before you got the work permit, etc. We also do NOT provide legal advice like this over the internet. See OUR INFO & CONTACT for how to contact us for a paid consultation.

Become our client, even if only a consultation, and then we will give you everything you ever want to know about your situation.

I’m in US on the refugee status since 11/1993. I renewed my greencard in 2005.
How important it is to renew it every ten years? I’m worried to have my green card or citizenship denied and be deported due to few misdameanor charges in the past 10 years such as dui and dv. Again, I was granted a refugee status in 1992 my enter and stay in the US is totally legal.

It should be renewed every 10 years but even if not, one does not lose his permanent residence if there are no criminal activities. The DUI and DV could hurt though. You should contact our office for a consultation when it comes to this. Our contact info is on this blog, at beginning and end of every article.

I was a year old when my parents brought into the U.S., illegally, and I’ve been here ever since. I’m 23 now and have been married to a U.S. citizen for two years. I was wondering what my chances are of getting a green card when ever I get my appointment in juarez. I’ve never been arrested or convicted of a crime, and I’ve always been a good student and graduated in top of my class at a two year college. Please any advise would be helpful

Hi,
I’m almost at the end of the IR-1 visa journey. My husband sponsored me and his I-864 is already been completed, so is my case at the NVC. My husbad last year income is over the 125 % poverty line, but the year before is much less then the poverty line. I’m afraid that the Consular official may determine the income as unstable or not projectable in the future, as he is pointing the “the bed year income”.
Can an official really reject an affidavit of support, based on specific facts, that the sponsor will not be able to maintain his or her household income at the necessary level.
Can I ” the intending immigrant ” may be found inadmissible under INA § 212(a)(4) as likely to become a public charge, becaouse of this one “bed imcome year” ?
Does a completed I-864 Form mean that it has been already vetted at the National Benefit Centar ? Is completed I-864 means by NVC “suggestably”approved ?

Can an official really reject an affidavit of support, based on specific facts, that the sponsor will not be able to maintain his or her household income at the necessary level.
Can I ” the intending immigrant ” may be found inadmissible under INA § 212(a)(4) as likely to become a public charge, becaouse of this one “bed imcome year” ?

Yes, of course they can deny your case because of these reasons: that’s what being a public charge in the law is all about. If your husband does not satisfy the decision-maker’s judgment that he makes enough to support you, then you will be denied (assuming no joint sponsor). Also, NVC has nothing to do with the I-864, they’re just a conduit or “middleman” to pass along your information and your file to the consulate in your country. A consulate officer makes the decision on the I-864.

Is it true that CR-1/IR-1 cases, the consulate makes no financial determination? You are either financially qualified or not based on the I-864. Cosponsors are allowed in this case regardless of other circumstances. Signing the I-864(a) is legally binding on the sponsor and cosponsor and no other subjective evaluation is done ?

Even I can answer this one (the Guru authorized me to do so): how can I tell if your husband is “financially qualified” or not, i.e. makes enough money to support you, unless I look at all the circumstances of his earnings the past few years? So, of course the consulate has to look at everything. You admitted that the year before your husband’s income was much below the poverty line so that is not enough of a stable income!

The Guru cannot answer more of your questions. His time is valuable and he already gave you a quick 30-second answer. Contact us next week for a paid email consultation, consult@guruimmigration.com, even if you’re in Bulgaria. I cannot answer any more of your questions either but you probably wouldn’t want me to answer you, I’m sure!

My husband went to his visa interveiw at Juarez today 02-18-09 but was denied the right to the waiver because many years ago he tried to smuggle his brother in although both were illegal and my husbands finger prints were taken. My husband has never been deported. Is there any hope for this case? Can he get the waiver in some way? Whats the next step? I look foward to you response. THanks Flor

we applied for asylem in 1992 and we withdrew our application in august 1996 after we got our permit resisdent in canada, we entered illegal tu us but we applied for asylem right way and we applied for work permit to and we were renew every year until we left in 1996, now we are canadian citizen since 2000, do you think we need a waiver to visit us even we are canadian and we have a canadian passport ,
thank you so much

Hi my husband was denied a visa in feb of 2009 on the basis of a failed drug test. But the strange thing is that he is not a user. He was given THREE tests. Two came out clean and on the day of his interview he was told that he was 12 times the legal limit for cannibus. So he was told to come back in three years after being rehabilitated. but we are at a loss as to what to do because he never ingested the drug he was accused of . So what do we need to do to ensure this does not happen again?

We seem to recall that you apparently asked us this question on another discussion board and we gave our information to you for a consultation. On anything like this, we can’t give you advice on a blog! It’s way too serious. You are invited to consult with us. The consultation fee is reasonable. You can contact us by telephone at 310.289.2155 or email: consult@GuruImmigration.com. All major credit cards and Paypal are accepted.

I admire the valuable information you offer in your articles.Just thought you’d be interested to know that I have added you to my bookmarks You make right points in a concise and pertinent fashion, This is a really good read for me, thank you for your time.

Im a born us citz. Married my husband of 12+years in florida. At that time he had a valid h1b visa. When we were married I filed the i130 wich was approved in 98. Somehow with our 1st bad lawyer, he charged us for an advance parole allowing us to go to the bahamas. This is the 1st problem. Our 2nd lawyer has helped us appeal till the cows come home and so here we now sit in the netherlands after Harold voluntarily left after the court proceedings. He hadent been home to see his family in 13years thru all this nonsence. Went to the us consul where they said our approved i130 needs to go to the natl. visa. center? Sure would like to get my husband back home to florida. We dont even have a parking ticket. pay taxes and we get s.security updates every 1/4. AARP, american legion…we are good folk and I read here it really doesnt matter?
I have been thru a great deal of your site and appreciate that help. Sure would like to find out how to do the next step. Thanx

We can only suggest any next step(s) through a paid consultation you do with us after the New Year. It’s not clear what happened from your description, and to be frank, a misunderstanding of the details could mean a whole world of difference between him able to come back fast or having to wait. If your husband was in Immigration Court removal proceedings and had to take voluntary departure, he may still have a 10-year bar against him. Or he may not. We cannot possibly know until we review all the dates and the actions taken by these two allegedly bad lawyers. And even after the consultation when we see a solution, we will of course recommend that your husband hire us to represent him in the pursuit of that solution. Please contact us by phone: +1 310 289 2155. If you hesitate because you don’t want to call overseas from the Netherlands, then contact us by email: consult@GuruImmigration.com. Thank you.

Hellow, first of all I would like to thank you for your comments… they are of much help.
I am a 23 year old Iligal Alien who was brought to the US form Mexico when I was 6 years old. I am now married and my wife is a US Citizen. My question is this: Can I still obtain legal status in the US? We have been married for over 2 years and I have been in this country since I was 6 yars old. When I was 17 years old I was cought, as a juvenile, with 33 onces of cocaine and charged, as a juvenile, with Possesion of a controlled substance with intent to deliver. I was never deported. Can I still become a legal citizen of the USA?

Since you came illegally and have unlawful presence in the U.S. for a year or more (it does not matter if you were “brought” here — you came illegally), you would have the 10-year bar against you when applying for permanent residence in Juarez where you MUST go to apply, if you take the risk. The more serious thing, however, is that you also have a controlled substance violation that was more than just possession (possession with intent to deliver — 33 ozs, more than 2 lbs of cocaine, which is a lot!), and that ground of inadmissibility, although not one of the top 10 grounds covered in the blog article, cannot be waived by Juarez even if it was a crime committed when you were 17. Unfortunately, this is pretty much a hopeless case as the law now stands.

Thank you so much for all this information. if someone entered the US illegal from Canada and applied for asylum and get working permit and worked legally for 4 years and paid tax and during this time was waiting for his Canadian immigration paper to be done and before leaving US the lawyer did withdraw the asylum application when he got approved for Canadian immigration. Do you think it will be impossible to get a green card even he got approved for I130? Or do you think it will be one of the Top 10 Reasons Why Immigrants Get Visas Denied”
Thank you
Nadia

Although not mentioned in our article (since all details about the topic simply cannot be covered), time spent in the U.S. during which the person had a bona fide asylum application pending does not count toward the unlawful presence bar of top reason No. 3 for visa denial, unless the person was working without employment authorization. So, the 10-year bar may or may not apply to you now depending upon how long you were illegal prior to applying for asylum.

Thank you so much for all this information, that you have published in these pages (has helped a lot). Im a 27 year old citizen from Western Europe and I just got married to a US citizen and I would have couple of questions if you could please help me.

1.Filling I-485 I was wondering what i should answer to ya question from criminal acts. I was involved in GTA 10 years ago as a minor and i was fined cause of it, but now prison, or parole. Cause i was a minor and its been 10 years, my government dont have records of it anymore. I understand that you being lawyer you cant tell me to lie, but…

2. I entered US on visa waiver and I havent been in country for more then alloud 90 yet. So my question is that filling my I-130 and I-485 now, will i be able to stay in US while the case is in procces, or will i become illegal immigrant right after the 90 day period is over?

3. What i have read from your pages, I have noticed that you do cases all over US and not just in West Coast. I would be intrested knowing your rates. So if you could please let me know the answer to this last question via e-mail (rest can be answered at this page), I would apprisiate it.

Thank you for all the information, that I have gathered all ready from these pages and keep up the good work!!!

Tuomas, juvenile crimes are usually not an issue as to admissibility but sometimes can, and only a lawyer could give an opinion on that. We will email you separately with our rates on a case like this.

Your comment is very vague. Did you enter illegally 15 years ago and still here in the U.S., or were you out of the U.S. and tried to apply for an immigrant visa at the U.S. consulate in your country (and now trying to reapply)? And what was it that you were denied for, adjustment of status? Or something else? After you’ve clarified, we recommend you do a consultation with us.

How should he handle that? Just follow instructions and obtain the tons of documents that they will instruct him he must have before he could get interviewed in Kingston. Do you realize that the problem is if he’s getting married, he goes from the F1 to the slower F3 category (married sons/daughters over 21 of U.S. citizens) which means he has to wait about 2 years longer before he could immigrate? If you want detailed advice, call our office at 310.289.2155 and we can do a paid consultation with you.